Scrappy Travels

Sometimes September 29 in Maryland is as gorgeous as this! On the very first day of September, I gave myself a challenge. I wanted to write 30 posts in 30 days. And I'm happy to say that I actually succeeded! While not every post was cutting edge or even terribly interesting, I wrote and that was the important part. The more I write, the easier it becomes.  I realized I liked trying out new things because I had to. Sometimes, I get inside my head and if the idea isn't perfect, I just let it go. But when I need to post something, I just go with the idea and see what comes out of my brain. I kinda love that! It also allows me to see things more creatively. What may just be a fabulous television show, or delicious meal, can turn into a really great story or at the very least a somewhat interesting story. So I'm going to try to keep up the streak for the next 31 days. At some point, I'm going on vacation, so I may be a little too busy having fun to write, but I'...

Aside from Lin, my very favorite member of the original Hamilton cast is Chris Jackson. And tonight I finally had the chance to see him in concert. I just love his personality and of course that gorgeous voice of his, so I was very excited to see him in a more informal setting. Obviously, he knocked it out of the park. His concert was seemingly off the cuff. He would sing a bit, then chat about a singer he liked or anecdotes about his family or Broadway. He's so sincere, and seemed to be blown away by the fact that he was performing at the Kennedy Center. It was sweet to see him get as excited as we were to see him. He chose a wide variety of songs to sing, such as classics by Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles and Harry Belafonte. Those were most of the ones I knew. He sang quite a few others that I'd never heard before, but they were no less fun. He even ended the show with a snappy version of "Happy" by Pharrel Williams. All in all, I liked his choices and they wo...

Last season, my three favorite shows on network television - because I'm cheap and don't have any streamers except Netflix - were This is Us on the drama side and Speechless and Will & Grace for a tie on the comedy side. Even though I avoid anything that makes me cry, I'm obsessed with This is Us . The storytelling is innovative and creative, and I've never seen a cast so talented and that gels so well together. It's a beautiful show that makes me cry every episode, and I'm still chomping at the bit every week to see something new. As for the comedies, Speechless is the perfect family comedy, set around a family coping with a child with a serious disability. What's perfect about it is the storyline doesn't revolve around his disability. The family is a normal American family, who just happens to have a son incapable of speaking. It's so much funnier than I'm making it sound. Once again, the cast gels perfectly and a show that advocates...

Today was not a good day by any means. It was pretty rough for everyone across the country. I found myself tied to the television, unable to look away at the horror show while shouting at the television set. Note to anyone thinking of taking a sick day, do so when a brave victim isn't being put on trial by a bunch of old men who'd rather question her memory than question the man she's accusing. It's a bit less infuriating and you may actually get some rest. Anyway, this evening, instead of continuing to shout into the void, I went to the theatre. I saw Dancing at Lughnasa at Everyman Theatre. I focused on the words of Brian Friel. I marveled at the beauty of the stage. I watched the little choices the actors made. I questioned choices the characters made. I thoroughly enjoyed a beautiful play. In other words for 2 and a half hours, I forgot about the confirmation hearing of the arrogant he who should not be named. I let that anger and sadness go, and completely ...

For the last hour, I've been sitting on my sofa watching a movie on the Hallmark Channel called "Murder she Baked." Please don't judge me, because I'm hardcore judging myself already. I've never actually understood the whole Hallmark movie thing. If I want to watch a mystery, I'll watch a Law & Order rerun.  Yet, in a day that included a terrifying press conference meltdown by he who shall not be named, a Hallmark movie about a bakery owner who solves a crime, seems like the perfect thing to hold my attention. And while I may be half asleep, I seem to be pretty invested in who exactly committed the murder. So much so, that when I switched over to watch "A Million Little Things", I set the DVR to record the last 30 minutes of the movie.  *And, for the record, I realize this may have been a super boring post, but know that I did warn you that some days my brain gets blocked. Today is one of those days. So a few paragraphs about a bakery ...

Over the last few months, the national conversation has been dominated by stories of men exerting their power over women. These women have bravely come forward to share their experiences in hopes of helping other women. Yet these women are still told that their feelings are somehow less than a man's. Today alone, Brett Kavanaugh - the Supreme Court nominee - has been accused by 2 additional women of sexual misconduct and Bill Cosby has been sentenced to 3 - 10 years for rape. The President and Congress are spreading a message that "boys will be boys" while Cosby's lawyer is saying the women accusing him have "a vendetta" against Cosby. Seeing what these women have gone through has angered me to no end. I can't fathom it, and I just can't understand how their experiences can be questioned while their attackers seem unaffected. The bravery of these women to share their story with the masses has been remarkable to see. However, it's heartbreak...

In New York this evening, friends, family and pretty much everyone who's everyone in the Broadway community are celebrating Andrew Lloyd Webber's work in Arts education and his 70th birthday (a little late). That's just another of the 3,362 reasons I wished that I lived in New York, but that's an entirely different story. I've written a lot about my love for ALW's work. I have this theory that if you're a musical theatre lover, you're either in the Sondheim camp or the Lloyd Webber camp. I'm planted soundly in the ALW camp. No offense to Stephen Sondheim, but ALW is the number one reason I'm a theatre-lover today. His work was the first I saw and the first I fell in love with. In elementary school - thanks to the best music teacher ever! - I was introduced to Jesus Christ Superstar . I was in awe of it all. The music is unbelievably good. The original cast is ridiculously talented. And the way it was filmed is just so before its time. I fell...

I've somehow lived in Maryland all of my life, and have never been to the tiny town of Chesapeake City. Up until a few months ago, I'd never even heard of it, which isn't a huge surprise because I'm not so great with directions.  While the town may not be a huge tourist destination, there are a few tiny shops and a great restaurant there to keep you busy on a summer afternoon. The shops mainly contain cute little knick-knacks and jewelry. But the shops themselves are in beautiful historic buildings, so even if you're not up for buying things, checking out the architecture is definitely worth it.  Another fun aspect of the town is that it sits on the Inland Waterway. What seems like a narrow canal, is actually a fairly deep connector for large container ships. I didn't realize that point, until an enormous ship came from behind a house and appeared magically in front of me. The ship looked entirely out of place and it was for some reason so cool t...

It's this lady's birthday. She's pretty much the best! She is by far the funniest, silliest and loveliest mom a girl could ever ask for. She is one of my most favorite people in the world. I'm not entirely sure how my dad (who is my other favorite!) and I got lucky enough to have her in our lives, but we're so thankful we did! I'm speaking for him here, but I'm pretty sure he and I aren't quite sure what we'd do without her. Love you bunches bud! Hope you had the absolutely, positively best birthday ever! Because you totally deserve it! Love you to the moon and back!  PS - Also, as you can see from this photo, we look absolutely nothing alike. : ) BTW, that saying about "Sometimes when I open my mouth, my mother comes out" has never been more true. I'm more like her than sometimes I care to admit, but I can't think of someone better to be like than her! 

About 6 months ago, my boss jokingly told me that she had added my joining eHarmony to her calendar. And if I didn't meet that goal, she was not going to be happy. So after attempting to write a profile - with input from every person in my life, I hit the button and joined the site for a whole year. Now after being a member for 6 months, I'm giving you an update on how it's all going. Long story, short - it's not. I've decided it's so not my thing. I don't know what it is, but there are no Prince Charmings on that site that like me, whom I also like. For starters, I've been matched with men way out of my radius. For some reason, the site thinks I want to drive super far to meet my prince for dinner or drinks. Honestly, at one point I had matches in Connecticut, and New York. Now, it's just mostly Virginia and DC. On top of not listening to my radius preferences, they seem to not listen to my thoughts on what I'm looking for in a mate. Sup...

A few weeks ago, I attended the National Book Festival in Washington DC. Only intending to purchase a few used books, I was not so pleasantly surprised when I realized this book festival did not have a used book area. What they did have was an entire area devoted to the books of the authors that were speaking that day, all run by Politics and Prose. That meant of course, I needed to at least peruse the bookshop area. And then since I have absolutely zero will power, it meant that I needed to buy an entire tote bag (Book-themed naturally...) full of very different books than I usually purchase. Since that time, I've read all but 2 of the books, and have varying degrees of feelings for each. I'll be honest, I purchased Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus specifically because I liked the title. But the story of a young girl who lives a fabulous life with her family, and just so happens to not have any arms, is a story of differences and how people can still ...

A few years ago, the bestie and I embarked on a trip to New England. We drove up to Connecticut, through Rhode Island, and then onto Boston. I'd never been farther North than New York, so I really enjoyed seeing that part of the country. As much as I loved Boston and Newport, in my opinion, the prettiest city we visited was Mystic, Connecticut. It's the quintessential  New England port city. It's not too big and not too small. And for someone who grew up outside of Annapolis, I felt right at home around all the boats and cute little shops. I just knew one day I'd go back and show off the town I'd fallen for. I was excited to return this past summer and on this trip, I was the tour guide and was able to show off what I love so much about Mystic.  Though, I'm not sure what that exactly is.    It may be the boats in the harbor, all coming and going in and out of the waterway. It may be the super cool drawbridge in the center of town, that due to ...

Recently, I've found myself craving Ramen pretty much all the time. Not the stuff that comes in a styrofoam cup and is full of all sorts of preservatives that assures it'll still be good in the year 2172. Nope, I've actually never even tasted that stuff. I want the good stuff. The soup that chefs perfect over many, many years of practice and recipe-tweaking. A really good bowl of Ramen is deceptively difficult to make. It looks fairly simple - noodles, broth, protein and some veggies. However, the broth - like most broths - is most important. If you don't have good broth, then the Ramen will be just as bad. And a good broth can have dozens of ingredients simmered and boiled to perfection. It's no wonder that few chefs go into the Ramen shop business. However, a few cooks out there have perfected the technique and choose to serve this unbelievably delicious food to the masses. One such shop is Ivan Ramen in the East Village of Manhattan. I first had this pa...

I love watching award shows. I love watching shows I love win awards and seeing actors I love all dressed up in beautiful outfits. I even love the speeches and the mostly ridiculous banter of the presenters. However, after just spending 3 hours watching the Primetime Emmy awards, I must say my award show fascination may be slipping away. For one, it was one of the laziest and non-exciting broadcasts I've seen in years. Even the stage was boring. It's like they heard the show was to be broadcast on a Monday night, and gave up caring about making it fun for the audience. There were the shows nominated and awards won. I can honestly say I haven't seen an episode of a single thing that won this evening. The only show that was consistently nominated that I watch is This is Us and that lost (still bummed!). The only person I really enjoy, who won an award was Jeff Daniels. I'm sure the rest of the winners and nominees are lovely people, but I've barely heard of th...

Every once in a while, on a positively gorgeous late summer day, you realize that our tiny little state of Maryland has loads to offer. For instance, the small town of historic Havre de Grace in Northern Maryland. There's a beautiful light house that seems to shine brighter white in the sunshine of the summer.   There's a beautiful waterfront that's perfect for sitting and reading, and snoozing if you're so inclined, where you can watch the boats, and see what may have been an eagle glide past. And there's the best candy store I've ever been to, where you can buy a pound of the most fabulous homemade chocolates you'll ever get a chance to sample. Seriously though, the candy store is named Bomboy's and if you're ever in driving distance of Havre de Grace, I'd get there fast if I were you! While Havre de Grace is a complete 180 from the bustle of New York City that I experienced yesterday, it's no less wonderful. I d...

The Tony-winning and hilarious Christian Borle is making his debut, directing the madcap action/adventure/love/comedic story  Popcorn Falls . In the play, 2 men inhabit 20 different roles while telling the story of the struggling town of Popcorn Falls, where the famous waterfall has all dried up. Knowing Borle's humor, the piece sounds tailor made for him, and if he weren't directing it, I'm sure he'd be in it. Popcorn Falls opened its first preview last evening, at the Davenport Theatre; a tiny off-Broadway theatre holding about 120 seats. Unfortunately, most of those seats were empty today. But I'm assuming they will soon be full because judging what I saw the show is practically perfect. I'm owning up the empty seats to the fact the show isn't out of previews yet. We only saw it so early in its run because we were hoping to see Christian in the audience prepping last minute notes. Alas, he was not to be seen sadly. The show however, was wonderful...

Big Cork Vineyards Summer Bash Reading: I just finished "Towers Falling" which, while not perfect is a great way to open a dialogue with kids about September 11. I'm about to start "Less" which is supposed to be hilarious. I definitely need the humor after reading such a serious book. Judging: My Ravens who beat the Bills 41 - 3 last weekend, pretty much flopped in primetime last night. What the heck? They usually don't look that tired until well past the second game of the season. Planning: There are so many BIG plans in the works, that my little brain is working in overdrive. I'm excited to see where they go! Getting Over: I suppose you can say that I'm pretty much OVER today. Work was not my favorite. So many things blew up that it felt like I worked in bomb disposal instead of instructional design. Can I just hit the lottery already and travel the world for a living? Listening to: I'm currently still living my best life as a S...

Total Travel Necessity - Sunglasses! There was a time, not too long ago when planning a trip required a trip to a travel agent, or purchasing all sorts of guidebooks and maps. That time has since passed. We're in a new age where technology reigns. There are loads of sites that assist you in itinerary planning and vacation dreaming. As someone who once loved guidebooks, I welcome this new age because what I would pay for, I can now get for free. Sites such as Travelocity, and TripAdvisor make travel planning as easy as clicking a few buttons. However, some sites exist that you wouldn't often associate with travel fun. These are the sites I tend to gravitate to. While I may not have a completely logical approach to organizing where I'll be going on vacation, my way has served me well. So, without further ado, I present to you the Kristen-approved travel planning process. First up is Pinterest. Honestly, you can find anything and everything on Pinterest. Plug in a dest...

On September 11, 2001, in Gander New Foundland, it was a day like any other. That is until US airspace closed because of the terror attacks in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington DC. When that happened, 38 planes diverted to the largest airport in Canada. Thousands of people from all over the world, made Gander Newfoundland - a town of about 7000 - home for almost a week until the airspace reopened. During that time, the people of Gander and the surrounding counties opened their hearts and their doors to those that were stranded. Ganderites provided a safe haven by feeding the passengers, and allowing the strangers to sleep and wash in their homes. In a remarkable outpouring of kindness, those in Gander shared comfort, love and hope to many who just wanted to be home with their own families.  The story of September 12 and beyond in Gander is portrayed in the blockbuster musical Come From Away , which just so happens to be one of my most favorite shows ever. The fact that ...

Even 17 years later, it's strange to see this skyline without the twin towers staring back at you. I remember that Tuesday morning as vividly as it happened yesterday.  I still can't quite believe it happened. A merica as a country lost so much that day. But in the midst of all that hatred and terror, there were so many acts of kindness, bravery and love. My goal since that September is to try not focus on the vicious acts of that fateful morning, but to concentrate on remembering those we lost, and those that chose to help in the days that followed. Those we lost will always be in our hearts and those that chose to help, have the undying love of a grateful nation. They showed that even in the darkest times, light can still be found.

One of my very favorite things to do in New York City, is to wander. According to many of my friends I don't often choose to do this wandering at the correct time. It turns out they don't prefer walking miles and miles in 900 degree weather. It's just not their thing.    I, on the other hand, can walk for hours in whatever weather. You see, the best parts of the city aren't the tourist traps. It's the little details around each and every corner. Buildings are more intricate. The street art is more vibrant. And I'm always able to find something new.    Every once in a while, the friends that hate this weather, do indulge me and that's often when we find the coolest things. That was the case last month. Even though August is the hottest month ever. Even though the sun was blazing. Even though the bestie had a bum toe. We still managed to see all sorts of new and wonderful sites in the Lower East Side.    If you're headed to New Yor...